Brizors
Jr. Member
- Nov 27, 2014
- 55
- 5
- Detector(s) used
- Minelab Sovereign GT
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
Firstly, I want to apologize for the long read although, with the complexity of metal detecting in regards to discovery goals, I feel that more information is best for solid advice.
With that said I am completely new to metal detecting although the past week I have picked up a few metal detecting youtube channels and also done a good amount of research in order to get a general idea of the concepts and tech of detecting. In that amount of time I have become absolutely obsessed with the idea of getting out there and digging up a storm. I used to detect with a $30 detector as a kid and it lead to some great adventures and awe inspiring discoveries (which I can’t wait to relive). I love the outdoors/hiking/camping and I think detecting would exponentially increase the enjoyment and possibilities on these adventures. I don’t know why I haven’t realized this earlier. I have about $1500 to $2000 at the moment to spend including accessories as I am serious about getting into detecting and learning as much as possible in my free time.
Unfortunately I am blessed with the challenge of black sand at the beach as a result of living in southern California (LA County) and so selecting a detector with my knowledge and lack of experience is extremely difficult. I am hoping you guys here can help me out with a decision that I will be happy with. I will be detecting at the beach majority of the time as I live so close, I especially have my eye on the wet sand. I feel like wet sand is where the real relics/treasure are from centuries ago as so many relics can be washed up over time. I was thinking of the AT Pro as it’s reasonably priced as well as having amazing versatility (I also will be detecting on land in the forest and rivers), although the AT Pro does not seem to fare well in the wet beach sand here due to the heavy mineralization even with its discrimination.
The dilemma is that I feel it would be horrible to miss all the good treasure/relics that are deep in the wet sand/water at the beach due to the ground balancing I would need to set on the AT Pro. It’s also unfortunate because the AT Pro is such a good detector for the money and versatile in any setting other than wet beach sand. I feel it would be great for all my other relic/coin/gold detecting that I will be doing in the forest and rivers on camping trips/hikes. Due to the fact I feel I will be spending the vast majority of my time in the wet sand and dry at the beach since I live 5 mins away, it doesn’t make sense for me to start with the AT Pro.
I am wondering what would be the best move for me based on this information. I don’t feel like digging deep will be a huge issue for me, maybe in fact I should be that person that digs deep all the time as a rite of passage into detecting to maximize the amount of learning/experience. With that train of thought, a waterproof PI detector would be great because I can detect with it literally anywhere unlike VLF machines. This way I wouldn’t miss out on any good finds at the expense of digging deep. I feel like this might be my best bet to start, but I am leaving it up to the advice I get from you guys. I do not yet understand the benefit of multiple frequency vs. PI technology other than the ability to discriminate. I’m sure there are also other types of tech I don’t know about that combine with VLF and multi-frequency detectors that might be a good fit for me. I would certainly consider the possibility of buying 2 different used machines with my budget in order to satisfy wet beach and dry conditions.
I would really appreciate the help and I look forward to getting acquainted with members here and learning from you all.
With that said I am completely new to metal detecting although the past week I have picked up a few metal detecting youtube channels and also done a good amount of research in order to get a general idea of the concepts and tech of detecting. In that amount of time I have become absolutely obsessed with the idea of getting out there and digging up a storm. I used to detect with a $30 detector as a kid and it lead to some great adventures and awe inspiring discoveries (which I can’t wait to relive). I love the outdoors/hiking/camping and I think detecting would exponentially increase the enjoyment and possibilities on these adventures. I don’t know why I haven’t realized this earlier. I have about $1500 to $2000 at the moment to spend including accessories as I am serious about getting into detecting and learning as much as possible in my free time.
Unfortunately I am blessed with the challenge of black sand at the beach as a result of living in southern California (LA County) and so selecting a detector with my knowledge and lack of experience is extremely difficult. I am hoping you guys here can help me out with a decision that I will be happy with. I will be detecting at the beach majority of the time as I live so close, I especially have my eye on the wet sand. I feel like wet sand is where the real relics/treasure are from centuries ago as so many relics can be washed up over time. I was thinking of the AT Pro as it’s reasonably priced as well as having amazing versatility (I also will be detecting on land in the forest and rivers), although the AT Pro does not seem to fare well in the wet beach sand here due to the heavy mineralization even with its discrimination.
The dilemma is that I feel it would be horrible to miss all the good treasure/relics that are deep in the wet sand/water at the beach due to the ground balancing I would need to set on the AT Pro. It’s also unfortunate because the AT Pro is such a good detector for the money and versatile in any setting other than wet beach sand. I feel it would be great for all my other relic/coin/gold detecting that I will be doing in the forest and rivers on camping trips/hikes. Due to the fact I feel I will be spending the vast majority of my time in the wet sand and dry at the beach since I live 5 mins away, it doesn’t make sense for me to start with the AT Pro.
I am wondering what would be the best move for me based on this information. I don’t feel like digging deep will be a huge issue for me, maybe in fact I should be that person that digs deep all the time as a rite of passage into detecting to maximize the amount of learning/experience. With that train of thought, a waterproof PI detector would be great because I can detect with it literally anywhere unlike VLF machines. This way I wouldn’t miss out on any good finds at the expense of digging deep. I feel like this might be my best bet to start, but I am leaving it up to the advice I get from you guys. I do not yet understand the benefit of multiple frequency vs. PI technology other than the ability to discriminate. I’m sure there are also other types of tech I don’t know about that combine with VLF and multi-frequency detectors that might be a good fit for me. I would certainly consider the possibility of buying 2 different used machines with my budget in order to satisfy wet beach and dry conditions.
I would really appreciate the help and I look forward to getting acquainted with members here and learning from you all.
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